really worried about bullwinkle

[favesis37]

she seems to be loosing weight fast. i can see her ribs. she is still eatting great, adn peeing and pooping. any ideas on what to do?:dono

[island rehabber]

she seems to be loosing weight fast. i can see her ribs. she is still eatting great, adn peeing and pooping. any ideas on what to do?:dono

I am no expert but, does she seem dehydrated? Eyes sunken in, skin very loose? If so it may be necessary to rehydrate her with Lactated Ringers solution or even a sub-Q of Ringers. Another cause of weight loss can be internal parasites...in both cases seeing a wildlife vet or experienced squirrel rehabber would be the next step.

[favesis37]

her skin is very loose, however it does not tent as they say.

[favesis37]

well no vet around here will see her. soooooooo i tried to add ensure to her formula she drank it but not much will go back to straight formula her next feeding. should she be on any water? should she be eatting every 2 hours all night long? how much? she usually takes around 2.5 cc's each feeding however sleeps thru the night. i am praying she makes it thru the night.

thanks for any and all info.
this has not been a good animal week for me, my rescue mare which we thoguth was pregnant and spent the last 9 months waittingfor this baby and many sleepless nights is not pg, she just has hormones issues.lol just like me i guess

[GhosTS]

As I remember Bullwinkle is about 4 weeks old...right.There wont be a need to give formula every 2 hours at night.once will be enough.Also you can try giving Ringers in between the feedings for 24 hours.A bit would be enough.There is no need to give water.Dehydration is caused by lack of minerals.Not water.
Do you have a small scale which you can measure him.If you can measure him you can get a better understanding whether if he is losing weight or not.

[muffinsquirrel]

If it is not dehydration, try adding some whipping cream to the esbilac to make it richer. How often do you feed her during the day? Do you know how much she weighs? Maybe fewer feedings during the day, but more per feeding?

muffinsquirrel

[Momma Squirrel]

How is Bullwinkle doing this morning??

[GhosTS]

Muffin...few feeding with more formula might not be good..He might get bloated.Just my thought.When Sparks was thin Chris told me to increase the feeding times during day..How often do you feed them..You should try giving a reasonble amount of formula every 3-3.5hours.

[favesis37]

well she is worse today, won't eat, can hardly open her mouth. she is still peeing and pooping, and moving around a little. i am afraid the next time i post it will be thru tears.

thanks for all the help

kim

[Momma Squirrel]

So sorry to hear that about Bullwinkle, but on the bright side the moving aruond and using the bathroom is still a good sign. Maybe try something different in the way of food? I wish I knew what to tell you to try but I don't, please keep us posted and our thoughts are with you both :grouphug

[Timber]

How old and how much does she weigh? You know I have found that a lot of people give to much formula at one feeding. If she is between 1 and 3 weeks old you may need to be feeding her every 3 hours, only 1cc and a little more watered down. I some times even mix mine with pedialite instead of water and they seem to like that better. And when they don't kust open their mouth and take the nipple sometimes you have to gentally force the tip of the nnipple into their mouth (from the side) and once they get the taste they will began to take some formula. Are you using a syringe or a bottle? If syringe what size? To big of a syringe can be bad because you can't feed a small enough amount with out getting air in. Too much air and eating to fast is usually the cause of blowet. I am sorry that I didn't ask questions sooner or try to help sooner but , well I have been busy myself and my mind has been barely working on automatic pilot.

[rygel1hardt]

Hi Bullwinkles mom
Something keeps telling me this baby is not getting enough time between meals to completely digest its formula. If this baby is over four weeks of age it should only be fed every four hours. If they are fed new food over old food it usually leads to bloat. Also what specifically are you using (bottle or syringe and if syringe what size) to feed this baby and is the formula Esbilac? What are this babies stools like, and what does he weigh? Please answer as soon as you can so we can try to help. Stacey



How old and how much does she weigh? You know I have found that a lot of people give to much formula at one feeding. If she is between 1 and 3 weeks old you may need to be feeding her every 3 hours, only 1cc and a little more watered down. I some times even mix mine with pedialite instead of water and they seem to like that better. And when they don't kust open their mouth and take the nipple sometimes you have to gentally force the tip of the nnipple into their mouth (from the side) and once they get the taste they will began to take some formula. Are you using a syringe or a bottle? If syringe what size? To big of a syringe can be bad because you can't feed a small enough amount with out getting air in. Too much air and eating to fast is usually the cause of blowet. I am sorry that I didn't ask questions sooner or try to help sooner but , well I have been busy myself and my mind has been barely working on automatic pilot.

[muffinsquirrel]

I agree, Stacey. That's what I was trying to say before, but just not as clearly. (Nor as logically.) I thought perhaps that the baby wasn't getting enough time to digest the food it was getting because it was too little too often.

muffinsquirrel

[favesis37]

well she did not make it. i am not real sure what happened, last night she seemed to be eatting better, then this morning she was gone. but to answer
the questions, she was on esblic, i was using a 1 cc syringe, she was gettin 2-2 1/2 cc every 2.5 to 3 hours. i had her 15 days but i do not know how old she was. she had her bottom teeth but her eyes weren't open and her ears were still laid back.

i want to thank every one here for all the information and help

[la dame à l'écureuil]

My sympathy is with you. How sad she didn't make it past 15 days. For whatever reason she died, you kept her comfort and safety. Without you she might have suffered terribly.

[Momma Squirrel]

So sorry to hear about Bullwinkle. You did your best and made the last days much better than what would have happened in the wild. Not much comfort right now but sometimes this job just doesn't always come out how we want it. Thank God everyone keeps trying and never gives up, thanks for being there for Bullwinkle.

[Secret Squirrel]

Sorry for your loss favesis37 :sad You did your best and thats what you need to hold onto....it's so sad to lose a little one. Were here for you and you hubby :grouphug

[Apple Corps]

Ditto all of the other good thoughts - they really do work their way into our hearts.